{hanging off the favor table, simply taped paper planes to twine - also had them hanging on the mantel and several other spots throughout the house}

Craft Table

{Paper plane centerpieces made with floral wire, a few cans, styrofoam and some fabric. I balled up coffee filters to cover foam - thought it looked like clouds. I also had a paper "table cloth" where I drew "zipping" planes and scattered mini paper planes like confetti.}

{Lemon Confetti Cake filled with Fresh Blueberry Preserves and topped with Marshmallow Buttercream. I finished it off with Buttercream "Zippy's," White Paper Planes and Lime Ribbon.}

Craft Time:

{making and decorating paper planes}

Then, each kiddo got to "Test Fly"

their plane through the hula hoop!

So.Much.Fun.

Baggage Claim Favor Table

{Included "candy clouds" - white cotton candy, paper plane making tools, stickers and aviator sunglasses. I put them in a simple white paper bag and drew the "zipping" plane on with a sharpie.}

The only thing I forgot to photograph were the invitations, but I simply printed the wording on the back of colorful scrapbook paper and folded it into a plane before placing in the envelope! Turned out adorable!

Method
In a small saucepan, combine first 4 ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture gets bubbly. Reduce heat to low and stir until it thickens and turns a shade or two darker. Set aside.
Preheat over to 325 degrees.
Whip egg whites until they are stiff. Place in fridge until needed.
In a kitchen mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, stir cake mix {I like to use Duncan Hines, but your favorite will work just as well}, flour and pudding mix until incorporated. Add in egg yoke, sour cream, pecans and condensed milk mixture. Spoon out half of the egg whites and add to cake batter. With a rubber spatula, slowly fold in until incorporated. Add in the rest of the egg whites and fold in. {Your arm will be aching at the point, but it's SO worth it!}
Pour into a greased bundt or 9x13 rectangle cake pan and bake until a tooth pick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake, about 40 minutes. {May be a little longer for bundt pan or a little less for the rectangle pan - all depending on how your oven bakes.}
Invert cake onto plate and let cool completely before icing.

To make sauce, place butter into a small sauce pan and cook on medium heat for several minutes. You will notice the butter starting to brown - once you have reached a golden color with brown bits on the bottom of the pan, the butter is ready to remove from the heat. Add in salt and powder sugar and whisk until all lumps are gone. You will need to add in some milk to loosen the icing a bit - start with 2 tbsp. and add more {one tbsp. at the time} until you've reached a thick, but runny consistency. Add in your vanilla and pour over cooled cake.

Method
In a medium size bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
Cream butter and brown sugar together in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment - add in egg yoke, apple butter and vanilla. Slowly mix in flour mixture until batter is completely combined. Divide batter in two balls and wrap each in plastic wrap or wax paper, rolling up to be as air tight as possible. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the batter is chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees and make cinnamon smear by combining all ingredients in a small bowl.

When batter has chilled, remove from plastic wrap and place on a floured cutting board. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness and evenly spread smear from edge to edge of dough. Starting with one end, roll dough onto itself until a log is formed. {Repeat with second ball of dough.} Cut the very end of each log off, so that you will have an even starting point. Cut the logs in 1 inch pieces and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8-12 minutes. Cool completely before frosting cookies.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare frosting by creaming the cheese and butter together in a kitchen mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Slowly add in powder sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat until frosting is fluffy and all powder sugar lumps are gone. Spread or pipe frosting onto cooled cookies and serve with ice cold milk!

Method
In a double broiler, melt the dark chocolate.
Melt bark in the microwave according to package directions. White chocolate can be very temperamental, so I would melt it in 20 second intervals and stir between each.
Place cookies in a food processor and pulse until they have become crushed. If you prefer a chunkier cookie in your mix, simply crush them with your fingers.
Place popcorn, one bag at the time, in microwave and cook according to package directions. I used a natural popping corn that had only been lightly salted. Once both bags have been popped, pour popcorn into a large bowl {making sure to remove all unpopped kernels} and stir in crushed cookies. Drizzle popcorn mixture with the melted white chocolate bark and stir to coat the entire batch.
Dump coated popcorn onto some wax paper and decorate with melted dark chocolate. Let all chocolate completely harden before placing in bowl, bag or jar. Makes approximately 16 cups and will keep for up to a week.

Helpful Hints:

You may want to consider using a store-bought popcorn - it seems to stay fresher and crisper longer. I would stick with a salted only flavor, though - Kettle Corn might be too sweet for some palates. I think this will be my best bet when giving it as a gift since I'm not really sure how quickly my recipient will eat their yummy treat!

I also think the best way to store/give this treat as a gift is in a glass jar. The popcorn didn't get soft as fast in the jar as opposed to being stored in a bag.

When making a second homemade batch, I poured the crushed cookies over the popcorn while it was still hot. That seemed to somewhat melt the vanilla filling, which I think only helps the white chocolate out in coating the popcorn! :) I will do it this way from now on when making a batch to be eaten the same day.

Chop dried cranberries and set aside. If using a white chocolate bar rather than chips, chop into small chunks and set aside.

Grease a baking pan {I used a 9 inch round, but if you want smaller slices, an 8x8 inch square will be your best bet. If you want to double the recipe for a large batch, use a 9x13 inch rectangle pan.} and set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla beans {1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract can also be used} with a wooden spoon. Add in flour and salt and stir just until the thick batter comes together. Next, stir in white chocolate and cranberries making sure not to over mix. Pour batter into your pan and bake for 18-20 minutes. Invert onto a pretty little plate and let cool completely before frosting the top. While the bars are cooling, prepare the

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz. Cream Cheese

1 cup White Chocolate, melted in a double broiler

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1/2 cup Powder Sugar

1/4 cup Dried Cranberries, lightly chopped

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix cream cheese, 2/3 cup of the melted white chocolate and vanilla extract until combined. Slowly add powder sugar {note: you may need a little more or a little less sugar, depending on your frosting consistency preference}and beat on med-high for several minutes.

When the bars have cooled, smooth the frosting on top with a spatula or knife. Sprinkle chopped cranberries on top and drizzle with remaining melted chocolate. Cut into slices or squares and serve! YUM! If you wish to slice in triangles like Starbucks, simply first cut into squares and then make a second cut across {from corner to corner} each square.

Whoa, momma!
These things are magical morsels
of pure happiness!

The bar is moist and chewy
with just the right amount of
sweet texture from the white chocolate.

But, you know what really put these over the edge?
The tart bite from thosedried cranberries!

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Set aside.
Coat two loaf pans with a non-stick spray. Set aside.
In a stand mixer, with paddle attachment, mix butter and sugar together on medium speed. Once the mixture turns a light yellow in color, add in eggs - one at the time. Mix in pumpkin and vanilla extract. Alternating wet and dry, add in buttermilk and flour mixture {I do half the buttermilk, half flour mixture and repeat.} Scrap down sides of bowl and beat again on low for another few seconds, making sure all ingredients are nicely incorporated. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans and bake for 50-60 minutes. Be sure to test center of loafs with a tooth pick before removing from oven...tooth pick should come out clean after being inserted intoeach loaf.

Hi ... I'm Jade and I'm addicted to baking!

About Sweet Baby Mason James

I am first and foremost a momma to my energetic 4 ear old son, Mason James, and my new baby girl, Alice Christine and wifey to my awesome hubby {who is, by the way, the best taste-tester a girl could ask for!} But, I'm also a classically trained chef who fell in love with the art of cake design...and just so happens to have a MASSIVE sweet tooth! sweet babies. a cupcake company was born from that passion and has graced many special occasion dessert tables including weddings all over SC. This blog is an outlet for me to share tips, recipes, pictures and party ideas. So, come join me on this wild and {sometimes} sweet ride I like to call life!

About sweet babies. a cupcake company

I've built my company on the belief that everyone deserves a "moment" now and again...and Gourmet Cupcakes are perfect for that! They are scratch made using the freshest ingredients found in the area, including whole milk and cream, real butter and vanilla, as well as ripe fruit, Ghirardelli chocolate and imported coffee. Each cupcake is made especially for you and your event and can be customized to fit any theme (including flavor.) My gourmet cupcakes are sold by the dozen. Full menu and pricing can be found here. Place orders for South Carolina weddings, birthdays, showers and other special occasions at sweetbabymasonjames@gmail.com. My awesome treats can also be ordered and shipped all over the US from HERE.